Official blog of www.inpharmd.com. InpharmD™ is the first iPhone App offering customized drug information. We post evidence summaries of recent articles from major medical journals.

first-episode

The American Psychiatric Association (APA) schizophrenia guidelines recommend all second-generation (“atypical”) antipsychotics as first-line treatment for first episode schizophrenia. [1] Unlike the APA guidelines, the 2009 schizophrenia PORT statements recommend risperidone, quetiapine, aripiprazole, and ziprasidone as first line therapy but not olanzapine due to the associated metabolic side effects. [2]

While trials such as the EUFEST and the CATIE trial have compared second-generation antipsychotics to first-generation antipsychotics, there is a lack of guidance whether one second-generation antipsychotic is better than the other in certain situations for the treatment of first episode schizophrenia. [3] This trial attempts to provide data to enhance the understanding of the efficacy, discontinuation rate, and adverse events of the second-generation antipsychotics in comparison with one another.